A birth plan is a document that outlines your preferences regarding labor and delivery. An expectant mother usually writes a birth plan, but anyone involved in a birthing situation can contribute to this plan.
You should give a copy of the birth plan to everyone on the birthing team, including your healthcare providers and anyone else in the room during the birth experience.
What Is a Birth Plan?
A birth plan is a written checklist of what to consider before, during, and after giving birth. Your birth plan may include who you want present during labor, whether you want pain medication or medical interventions, and the ideal environment.
This plan helps you emphasize your preferences and options so you can have a less stressful experience. It can also help you feel more comfortable if any issues or unforeseen circumstances arise.
Types of Births to Indicate in Your Birth Plan
Here are some preferences for delivery methods you can indicate in your birth plan:
Natural Birth Plan
A natural birth plan includes a vaginal delivery where your baby is born through the birth canal. There are no machines for continuous fetal monitoring.
Birthing can occur naturally without pain medication or artificial medical intervention. A trained midwife or a doula (labor assistant) usually guides the mother through the birthing process.
Vaginal Birth Plan
A vaginal birth plan includes a vaginal delivery where your baby is born through the birth canal. The delivery typically takes place in a medical facility, and the mother is usually guided through the birthing process by a licensed medical professional such as a doctor or nurse.
The birthing process can progress naturally, with or without pain medication or artificial medical intervention, such as an epidural injected into your lower back near your spinal nerves to block labor contractions.
Induction Birth Plan
An induction birth involves planned procedures where your doctor or midwife helps start your labor contractions, typically because they aren’t starting independently.
Methods include applying topical prostaglandin to the cervix, membrane sweeping to help your water break, or administering labor-inducing Pitocin meds through an IV.
C-Section Birth Plan
A Cesarean-section birth plan, or C-section, is the surgical delivery of a baby through a surgical cut or incision in a woman’s abdomen and uterus.
After a medical team removes the baby from the womb, they close the uterus and abdomen with stitches that later dissolve.
If you or your baby are under dire stress and you need to deliver the baby urgently, your doctor may decide to perform an emergency C-section. You can have any of the following preferences:
- I would like a second opinion.
- I would like to make sure other options have been exhausted.
- I would like to stay conscious.
- I would like my partner to remain with me the entire time.
- I would like the screen lowered so I can watch the baby come out.
- I would like my hands left free so that I can touch the baby.
- I would like the surgery explained as it happens.
- I would like an epidural for anesthesia.
- I would like my partner to hold the baby as soon as possible.
VBAC Birth Plan
VBAC is “vaginal birth after cesarean” delivery and refers to giving birth through the vaginal canal after a woman has already had a C-section. You’ll follow the same process for any natural vaginal delivery when you enter labor.
Home Birth Plan
A home birth occurs in a residence rather than a birthing center or hospital. A registered nurse-midwife, certified midwife, a trained doula with experience managing home births, a doctor, or an obstetrician usually attend home births.
To be less intrusive, only periodic monitoring of your temperature, pulse, blood pressure, and your baby’s heart rate takes place.
Home birth plans are customarily followed more closely to meet the birth mother’s preferences while giving birth in a home setting.
Tips for Writing a Birth Plan
Follow these tips when writing a birth plan:
Include a Contingency Plan
The labor and delivery process will go exactly as your birth plan describes in an ideal situation. But sometimes, complications can occur, and preferences such as having a home birth may no longer be safe for you or your unborn child.
If the unexpected happens, you should consider creating a contingency plan with backup options. For example, you may need to have an emergency C-section. In this case, you can specify you’d prefer a gentle C-section or a vaginal seeding procedure.
Educate Yourself
Consider completing a childbirth preparation program before attempting to write your birth plan. You can educate yourself on the different options for pain management, medical interventions, and other aspects.
If you are running out of time before delivery, try reading a book on childbirth preparation or watching a video course to enhance what you already know and present you with more possible choices.
Be Concise
Be concise in your birth plan by writing your preferences in short, clear sentences. Ask members of your birth team to proofread your birth plan for clarity so you can simplify any of your points if necessary.
